Reader, do you know the definition of the word ‘chiaroscuro’? If you look in the dictionary, you will find that it means the arrangement of light and dark, darkness and light together. Let me tell you a few things you already know: Sometimes light and darkness take up residence in the same heart. Sometimes those who […]

Two-year-old Silas stood awaiting his sentence. Someone had committed a crime against household harmony, and he had no alibi. In fact, the Judge had seen Silas do it. Whoever said “Justice is blind” was crazy, he thought. I think Justice has eyes in the back of her head. And she did. Things were not looking […]

I’ve learned what to expect when I take my kids for a walk: my three-year-old hits the ground at a sprint. He charges into the wide world at full tilt, without a plan and without fear. He just has to run. He is a doer. His sister, on the other hand, ambles along with her […]

Kids notice everything. Sometimes this can be problematic. Yesterday, for instance, my four-year-old was horrified by some imperfection in a stranger’s complexion at the grocery store. “Mama, what was that THING on that man’s face?” And of course, the man with the thing on this face was still well within earshot. But my kids’ keen […]

“You’re just so irritating and… and likeable!” – Annabelle Bransford, “Maverick” One thing I admire about many of my friends who are parents is their knack for creating with and for their children. They can take everyday challenges – picky eaters, messy rooms, monsters under the bed – and turn them into songs or stories […]